The Creston Valley Thunder Cats didn’t play on the weekend — bus troubles kept them from visiting the Fernie Ghostriders on Saturday — but the team is gearing up for three games this weekend, hosting the Golden Rockets on Friday and Sunday, and travelling to Invermere on Saturday.
The games will be the Thunder Cats’ last before a two-week Christmas break, and head coach Josh Hepditch is hoping his team, currently first in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League’s Eddie Mountain Division, can stay on top.
“There are a lot of teams that are going to be playing the week after us,” he said. “We’ve got to really focus on doing our job before we head into the break.”
The team will be a bit shorthanded this weekend, with Marcel Fuchs and Brandon Formosa sitting out, respectively, one and three games, following penalties earned in a Nov. 31 game.
With this weekend’s three divisional games, the Thunder Cats have a chance to pull even farther ahead of the tied-for-second Fernie Ghostriders and Kimberley Dynamiters, who, with 29 points, sit seven behind the Thunder Cats. Invermere’s Columbia Valley Rockies follow with 24 points.
“We’ve got to find a way to keep that separation in the standings,” said Hepditch.